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It’s become a farce … with the agitators, activists, and attorneys trying to “capitalize” on a drug-addled thug’s fatal encounter with a police officer …

Daryl Parks, the attorney representing the family of Michael Brown, says they may sue Darren Wilson, the former Ferguson police officer who shot and killed the black teenager in August.

Parks suggested on “Fox News Sunday” that Brown’s family would pursue a legal settlement or, failing to reach one, file a lawsuit.

“Obviously they have the option of a civil lawsuit, one, [on] a civil rights basis against Officer Wilson, two, against the police department and the city of Ferguson if that time comes,” he said. “Those are not issues that we discuss publicly but I think we will certainly give the parties a chance to work that out. <Source>

It’s not about justice – the Grand Jury has examined all of the forensic data and eyewitness testimony and failed to return a “true bill” indictment on criminal charges. Justice has been served, a Grand Jury was empaneled to look at the evidence and to determine if a crime had been committed. The fact that the family or the community is unhappy about their decision is irrelevant.

It’s not about civil rights – the drug-addled thug, stolen merchandise in hand and fresh from a strong-arm robbery of a convenience store, chose to disobey a lawful police command to stop walking in the middle of the street. Had the thug complied instead of confronting and attacking the officer in his police vehicle, he might be alive today. He clearly represented an existential threat to the police office who was understandably afraid for his life.

Is it about money? – obtaining some form of payoff from the local, state, or federal government; and continuing the media circus to maximize profits and the self-serving agendas of the participants. The corrupt progressive socialist democrats, the communists, and the anarchists who are attempting to use this situation to attract national and international media attention to boost their self-serving personal, political, and profit-making agenda.

Is it about Greenmail? – suing or threatening to sue in order to reach a settlement that is far cheaper than the legal expenses, and to reduce the ongoing reputational and property damage caused by continued agitation. Of course, such settlements are easy to arrange because politicians care little or nothing about the money as it all comes from the taxpayer. Not to be forgotten is the city’s ongoing insurance coverage which could be substantially increased if agitation continues.

Justice would be Darren Wilson suing for damages …

True justice would be the police officer suing for the destruction of his life and career, the necessity to move, any loss in property values from a forced sale, asking for an award to cover life-long security and medical expenses should he be attacked by someone seeking redress for Michael Brown’s death or to build a reputation.

Bottom line …

The only lawsuit I can see is the Environmental Protection Agency suing the officer over environmental lead pollution. All kidding aside, a thug lost his life and the nation should give up their time, effort, and money to make this miscreant a civil rights martyr?

Truth be told, he was a drug-addled thug, chose to precipitate his own death, and should be forgotten as one of those who did not contribute anything meaningful to society except rioting, looting, and the destruction of public and private property.

Let us concentrate on the good kids doing the right thing instead of the thugs that cause crime, chaos, and confusion.

You cannot help but be angry at the agitators, rioters, looters, and those who destroyed public and private property in Ferguson, Missouri. And, frustrated with the public officials who tolerated this criminal behavior to purse their political agenda. Likewise, I cannot help feeling outraged that a police officer doing his duty is being crucified in the court of public opinion, again by those pursuing a personal, political, or profit-making agenda.

So I was relatively surprised when I received an intriguing comment in response to one of my posts on the turmoil in Ferguson … intriguing because it contained a link to YouTube video and used the provocative authorship of someone who was a “staff writer” for the National Association for the Advancement of White People – clearly a play on the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People).

The video referenced is a flash mob assembling at a local mall to sing Christmas carols and uploaded in 2012 …

A name check on the Internet suggests the comment was meant to be racist in nature, why else would someone use the NAAWP attribution. And, had the commenter left off the attribution, I would have looked at the video and published the comment without a second thought.

The National Association for the Advancement of White People (NAAWP) is a name that has been used for several white nationalist organizations in the United States, deriving its name from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

The first organization was originally incorporated on December 14, 1953 in Delaware by Bryant Bowles. The following year an article was written on the organization by Time magazine. In September 1955, the Deputy Attorney General of Delaware took action to revoke its corporate charter.

In 1979 David Duke left the Ku Klux Klan and incorporated a new group taking the name of the defunct National Association for the Advancement of White People. It was headquartered in Metairie in unincorporated Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans. <Source>

You can’t get more racist than white supremacist David Duke. So I was curious to see if the organization still existed. Apparently, according to the Louisiana Secretary of State, the name is valid, but the corporations (with different corporate officers) are inactive.

So what about the author? …

There was no trouble finding Mr. Traina and his viewpoint on the Internet.

Louisiana School Psychologist Who Said Black Thugs Need To Be “Put Down” Resigns

The suburban New Orleans public school psychologist whose allegedly racist online comments triggered to a discrimination complaint with the federal government has resigned, the school system said.

Mark Traina, 55, of Slidell, La., worked with students in the Jefferson Parish Public Schools’ “alternative schools,” where elementary and middle-school pupils “with difficulties in learning and, in some cases, in adapting to the rules of school or community” are sent, according to the school district.

He was the subject of a complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Education by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a liberal-leaning civil rights advocacy group, which cited comments on Twitter like this:

“Angry young black males with no respect for life destroying the U.S.” “Serpas should be warning people to stay the hell out of New Orleans! These black dudes will kill you!” (The reference is to Ronal Serpas, the New Orleans police superintendent.)“2 New Orleans policemen shot, 1 suspect dead, another injured. UPDATE|NOLA Quick Someone call David Duke before the NAACP gets here.”

Msnbc.com highlighted the case Tuesday, reporting that Traina stood behind his comments, which he said he’d made out of frustration with crime in general. Late Tuesday, Beth Branley, a spokeswoman for the school district, told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that Traina had resigned, effective immediately.

School board members had urged acting Superintendent James Meza to take quick action, NBC station WDSU of New Orleans reported. Late Tuesday, the board members said Traina would have been fired had he not resigned.

Investigators for the Civil Rights Division were already separately investigating allegations of discrimination against African-Americans and students with disabilities in Jefferson Parish. Traina’s online comments could still be part of that investigation, the Times-Picayune reported.

Traina, who in his Times-Picayune user profile describes himself as a “civil rights activist,” called the complaint “unfair” Tuesday in an interview with WDSU.

Traina expanded on those remarks in a long comment posted to the Times-Picayune website last week:

The Southern Poverty Center knows that these allegations are ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE! This is just another way to harass the Jefferson Parish Public School System. One only needs to read the Times Picayune to see who the real trouble makers are. Sadly, it is disproportionately young black males. Everyone knows that our jails throughout the United States are disproportionately filled with black people. Why would the rate be any different in an educational environment?

Traina said he isn’t a racist, telling WDSU that he made the online comments “out of frustration.” “There’s too much killing going on,” he said. “There’s just too much crime in the country, and it’s not all black on black. “It’s got to be put down. It’s got to stop,” he added. “People are just sick and tired of the crime.”

We’re sure there is plenty of crime and wrongdoing being committed by black youth in Jefferson Parish, but this man has no business working as a school psychologist for ELEMENTARY school students when this is his mindstate. No amount of frustration should have motivated that kind of venting on a public forum. <Source>

I am no fan of the Southern Poverty Law Center, believing it to be nothing more than a self-serving racist organization populated by progressive socialist democrats.

I am also no fan of any local, state, or federal government who allows gangs – in essence domestic terrorists – to roam freely and commit criminal acts without punishment. The idea that minority criminals be given a pass because they have disproportionate interactions with the police or are disproportionately incarcerated is repugnant. It speaks more to bad behavior than disparate treatment under the law. That is not to say that minorities may not receive harsher penalties than similarly situated whites under certain conditions; because every judicial jurisdiction tends to “send messages” as a deterrent to continued bad behavior. Whether sentencing is racist should be studied by sociologists, criminologists, and attorneys on a case-by-case basis, not aggregated and adjudicated based on statistical analysis and Attorney General Eric Holder’s thesis of disparate impact.

And, I am certainly suspicious of any professional school employee, especially one at an elementary school level, that has the stunningly bad judgement to hold themselves out as a civil rights activists and put forth un-civil or provocative comments. Like the black activists affiliated with educational institutions, he did it acting as an individual and without reference to his employer.

But is Traina a racist or simply a frustrated middle-class, middle-age, white male paying the price for continuing minority aggression and political corruption in America?

There is no doubt that he, like myself and many others, is deeply troubled and frustrated by thuggery – white, black, brown, or paisley. And most of his posts relate to criminal activities. But that does not make him a racist in my mind as I can understand and sympathize with many of his views.

But what bothers me is his association with what appears to be a racist organization and the fact that he is proud enough of the organization to self-describe himself as a staff writer. But, it appears he is much more than a staff writer …

Bottom line …

In past blog posts I have condemned the progressive domination of education and the mind-warping of children that are rapidly becoming functional illiterates unable to cope with life without governmental assistance. Well it appears that the opposite faction also has access to our children, not in the numbers of the progressives, but with a similarly potential virulent mindset; and it only takes one to warp a young mind.

I am sure that Mr. Traina was trying to be cute with his comment … but it appears to have backfired. It is not cute, as it appears insidiously malicious and does not bode well for a nation that must overcome our differences to become the nation our founders had envisioned. A great nation and a beacon of democracy shining in a world of despots, dictators, and dirtbags. Not to mention criminals and corrupt politicians.

What is with the unions? If they haven’t been infiltrated or cozy with organized crime, they are out espousing socialist and communist revolutionary rhetoric as if America was Cuba. It is one thing to represent workers in collective bargaining, it is another thing to force American workers into supporting the progressive socialist democrats – looking more and more like the American Communist Party – into political positions they may not support.

So why do we find the unions in the middle of a controversy about a strong-arm thug shot and killed by a police officer doing his duty?

Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on the Ferguson Grand Jury Decision

The reactions to today’s grand jury decision in the case of the shooting of unarmed teenager Mike Brown reflect a deeper feeling that our justice system is biased against communities of color. While we can all agree that justice must take its course, we cannot deny or marginalize the perception that the system, itself, is not yet color blind. As a labor movement, we have begun working with local community organizations to address issues of racial and economic inequality that surround Ferguson and so many other neighborhoods like it. We will continue that work. We are dedicated to supporting organizing efforts that reinforce unity, healing, and fairness in policing.

You would think that Trumka, who I regard as a communist, would support his union brother the police officer over a thug that brought about his own death by attacking a police officer after committing a strong-arm robbery of a convenience store. Trumka is exploiting race to pursue his own agenda. If it was about economic inequality, where is Trumka condemning the President’s position on illegal aliens that is disadvantaging his membership’s employee opportunities?

Statement of SEIU President Mary Kay Henry On the Grand Jury Decision in Ferguson, Missouri

"For months, families across our nation have experienced collective grief and outrage over the taking of Michael Brown's life and the resulting turmoil that has upended the community in Ferguson, Missouri. Today, the grand jury's decision deepens those wounds and amplifies even more the disproportionate and disparate injustices experienced by communities of color. These injustices reverberate through all communities and take our nation another step away from a fair and just society.

Our disappointment in today's decision does not extinguish the hope in our hearts for a better America for all our children regardless of where they were born or in which zip code they live.

Black lives matter. Brown lives matter. All lives matter. The dream of America can never be fully realized until justice and safety prevail in every community across our country. The Department of Justice must prioritize the investigation into the murder of Michael Brown.

SEIU members stand with our brothers and sisters in Ferguson and across the nation in expressing our grief and frustration. We join them in calling for something better for all neighborhoods and communities and joining together in peaceful demonstrations at federal courthouses across the country. More information can be found here (http://nationalactionnetwork.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HANDS-UP-JUSTICE-RALLY-FLIER-11-21.pdf). We encourage all involved law enforcement to honor the rules and the rights of people to protest and speak out.

We will not rest in these efforts until America is a more just society where every human being is respected and every community has equal opportunity to thrive."

First, Michael Brown was not murdered and his hands were never up in a position of surrender. The police officer stopped shooting three times when he gave Michael Brown a chance to surrender. Brown was slain by a police officer acting in self-defense during a vicious thuggish attack after the suspect had just committed a strong-arm robbery of a convenience store. Second, perhaps you should be encouraging the community to curtail their thuggish children before they decide to commit suicide-by-cop. Third, Michael Brown had zero civil rights the minute he became an existential threat to the officer’s life by entering the police car and grabbing the officer’s gun. And fourth, we can see that this socialist union is just another America-basher – all for the purposes of raising their membership and funding as they promote the causes of international socialism.

CWA Statement on the Grand Jury Decision Regarding the Shooting of Michael Brown

By declining to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of Michael Brown, the legal system has failed the family of Mike Brown and the entire Ferguson community.

The people of Ferguson deserved a full accounting of the tragic death of Michael Brown. Instead, the community’s hope that the rule of law, that fairness, finally would prevail, has been shredded.

For too long, residents of Ferguson and too many other communities across our country have seen their civil rights violated, their communities disparaged and their call for justice ignored. Now, for the family of Michael Brown, there is no path to justice.

CWA members will continue to be active partners in the fight to restore real democracy, not only in Ferguson, but across the country. Particularly, that means ensuring that residents can fully exercise their rights to vote. In Ferguson, many residents of Ferguson are unable to vote. As a result, turnout is low and those elected to public office, including the offices of city council, mayor and police chief, do not reflect the community.

Change will come. For now, we pray for justice and peace, for the family of Michael Brown and the entire Ferguson community.

The legal system worked as designed – to keep an innocent police officer for being prosecuted for simply doing his job while facing a deadly threat from an out-of-control thug high on marijuana and who had just committed a strong-arm burglary of a convenience store. The officer testified at the very proceeding that was seeking to indict him, full well knowing that his words could be used against him in any subsequent trial. I would say the justice system worked admirably and this type of full and complete Grand Jury proceeding should be a model for Grand Juries everywhere in our nation. There can be no such thing as a community call for justice when the community does not have all of the facts, appears to favor one side over the other, and then riots and loots when their perception of justice is not validated by the facts. Justice would be a fair and impartial hearing. As for the Michael Brown family, how is it his thuggish mom was involved in a beat-down over Michael Brown merchandise being sold by his “grandmother?”

“Today, first and foremost, we mourn for our sister Lesley McSpadden, a member of UFCW Local 88, who got neither justice nor peace for the death of her son.

The simple truth is that there are too many Michael Brown’s in America needlessly having their lives cut short and we in the labor movement have a responsibility to take action.

This tragic case must spark a renewed discussion about race, class, and inequality. We can no longer afford to sweep these important issues under the rug because they might make some people uncomfortable. We must be a force for good jobs, safe streets, and justice under the law. We need to take a hard look at all of our social and political institutions and ask whether they are really serving the common good.

The grand jury decision was the end of a process, but it also must be the beginning of a conversation. We owe that to the Brown family, the community of Ferguson, and our entire nation.”

The mother got justice – a thuggish menace to the community of Ferguson was responsible for the actions leading to his own death. If the mother lacks peace, that might be her conscience nagging her for not disciplining her thuggish son sooner or dealing with his drug issues. And, there are more Michael Browns because minority black males commit a disproportionate number of crimes – mostly against other blacks. Had the police officer been black, this incident would have slipped unnoticed under the sands of time. If it were not for activists and agitators pursuing their own personal, political, and profitable agenda, the City of Fergusson would not have been subject to rioting, looting, and the destruction of private and public property as if these were Muslims rioting over a cartoon.

The “conversation” you owe to America involves the union-led political corruption and the promulgation of an anti-America worldview.

The truth the unions refuse to discuss ...

Unions waffle on-and-on endlessly about inequality, but refuse to acknowledge that the greatest cure for inequality is a good education. So why do the unions make things so difficult to fire incompetent teachers? Why do the unions reward seniority over merit? Why do the unions demand teacher tenure in 18 months (e.g. Los Angeles Unified School District) when that is barely over the probationary period in private enterprise? And, why do the unions fear charter schools as if they, and they alone, owned the students and the funding calculated on the basis of average daily attendance? Let the unions talk about inequality -- and then be challenged on their hypocrisy.

Bottom line …

The more anti-America rhetoric I see from the progressive socialist democrats and the unions that support them, the more I fear for a free and open America.

The progressive socialist democrats are using the IRS to attack conservative organizations that express a political viewpoint, but you never see the same progressive socialist democrats attack unions for their anti-America, socialist revolutionary rhetoric or condemn the rise of union-sponsored political corruption. To believe that 90+% of a union’s membership supports the progressive socialist democrats – at least according to the union’s sponsorship of one political party, is to suspend belief in the diversity of American political thought.

Furthermore, the unions continue to intimidate their members with old-style thuggish behavior and represent a clear and present danger to America and Americans with their slavish devotion to communist rhetoric and revolutionary ideas.

Time to wake up … and find that America is under attack from within. Foreign and domestic enemies have infiltrated our government, our bureaucracy, our institutions, and our infrastructure to the point where a combined strike on public and private facilities can cripple our nation.

Time to “purge” the union’s socialist/communist leaders and those in the progressive socialist democrat party who are trying to fundamentally transform America into a socialist workers paradise like Cuba, Venezuela, China, Russia, and North Korea. Remember, it is the leadership of the unions that is corrupt, not necessarily the members who are thuggishly forced to support the leadership.

Once again the progressive socialist democrats are trying to slime the Ferguson Prosecuting Attorney by suggesting that it was his duty to seek a Grand Jury indictment of Police Officer Darren Wilson on criminal charges relating to the shooting death of Michael Brown.

Because no “true bill” indictment of the police officer on any of the five criminal charges that could have been pursued, the progressives claim that the Grand Jury system is deeply flawed and the Prosecuting Attorney was somehow responsible for the Grand Jury’s decision not to return a “true bill” charging the officer with a crime.

Unfortunately for the progressives, the Prosecuting Attorney not only did his job by showing the Grand Jury all of the forensic evidence and eyewitness testimony, but he somehow convinced the Officer to testify as to the events of that fateful day. Something he did not have to do, full well knowing that anything he said, and mistake he made, could be used against him in a court of law.

The progressives claim that only through a vigorous cross-examination can the truth of the eyewitness statements be vetted. This would also expose those eyewitnesses to both intimidation and retaliation, hence the use of secret Grand Jury proceedings.

If this case did not involve a white shooting of a black, this case would have never attracted the race-baiters, the high-profile attorneys, and agitators who needed to gin-up controversy to pursue their self-serving personal, professional, and profitable agenda.

Pure progressive bullshit …

St. Louis County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch’s announcement of his failure to secure the indictment of Officer Darren Wilson in the Aug. 9 shooting death of unarmed teen Michael Brown has openly and shamelessly mocked our criminal justice system and laid bare the inequality that is emblematic of criminal jurisprudence in the United States. Monday night’s farcical performance during McCulloch’s press conference, at which he announced the grand jury’s “no true bill” decision, was a failed and poor attempt to convince the residents of Ferguson, St. Louis County, and the nation of the legitimacy and fairness of the grand jury process.

The community in Ferguson and the public at large would have been far more satisfied with the criminal-justice process had this case gone to trial before a judge or a jury, even if the charge was involuntary or voluntary manslaughter, and even if it resulted in an acquittal of Darren Wilson. What we are seeing on the streets is a manifestation of our collective frustration and outrage that Michael Brown will never see his day in court—at least not in St. Louis County.

The rhetoric of a progressive pushing his worldview in a progressive media story for personal gain?

Of course Michael Brown would never see his day in court – he was not the victim, but a drug-addled thug high on marijuana who committed a strong-arm robbery minutes before he openly and violently confronted a police office, culminating in an attempt to secure the officer’s gun and Michael Brown’s death because he repeatedly refused to follow the police officer’s commands and launched an attack on the officer. That the officer gave Brown three opportunities to surrender (once just after shots were fired in the car, once just after Brown turned and stopped, and once before the fatal shots were fired.).

It is almost as if the progressives wished that Brown had gotten the gun and killed the police officer. Of course, this would have simply been chalked-up as a local killing and never blown into a media circus by race-baiters, race-hustlers, attorneys, and the media seeking an audience.

Bottom line …

The legal process worked perfectly. It kept an innocent police officer from facing criminal charges. Unfortunately, in the process, the man’s career has been destroyed and his life unalterably changed. Who is responsible for that? Al Sharpton? The Media? The racists? Or all of those who exploited this issue for personal gain?

As for the rioters, looters, and those who destroyed public and private property – this was not a legitimate protest, but self-serving thuggery and hooliganism. The police and the national guard failed to perform their duties to keep Ferguson people and property safe lest they offend the progressive protesters in full view of the media.

What should be done is to arrest all of those who perjured themselves with false testimony before the Grand Jury. And hold the looters and rioters accountable for their actions. For those caught with explosive devices or Molotov cocktails, charge them as domestic terrorists.

How the hell can “We the People” continue to condone thuggery in the name of civil rights?

The evildoers are out to bleed you dry in 2016, hoping you are too stupid to know the issues or apathetic to care about the State of California …

Heaven forbid that the progressive socialist democrats in California would downsize the bureaucracy, reduce the number of economy-destroying rules and regulations, and curb governmental waste, fraud, and abuse.

No, it is far easier to pick your pockets by using hand-crafted items place on the 2016 ballot and sold by suspiciously-named backers and using misleading half-truths and outright lies.

It is time to watch what the tax-hungry politicians, labor unions, and community activists are doing to create AstroTurf groups that look like grass-roots operations, but are run out of lobbyist’s offices in Sacramento.

Of course, the pitch will be that consumers and residents will face higher crime rates, fewer services, and a host of other serious consequences if the public does not voluntarily vote for tax measures placed on the ballot.

Of course, with large union voting blocks, look for pitches for educational funds; even though the current educational environment is a failure, we are producing another decade of functional illiterates, and most of the money raised goes into personnel salaries, union pension and healthcare payments, and new infrastructure being built and operated by union personnel. Heaven forbid, that we save twenty or more percent by removing union bidding requirements from State contracts.

Of course, let us not forget those sin taxes that are designed to combat diseases relating to cancer (smoking) and obesity (food taxes).

And, let us not forget the billionaire nannies like former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and San Francisco hedge fund manager Tom Steyer. Steyer seems to want a crude oil extraction tax to price fossil fuels to levels where green energy appears to be competitively priced. All for the purpose of halting the faux planetary emergency of global warming. Something that cannot be proven scientifically, and has not occurred for more than a decade.

The asshats speak with forked tongue …

How many previous politicians and administrations have told Californians that this or that proposition would put California on a firm financial footing and stabilize our economy. Over time, all proven to be blatant lies – and known as lies to the proposition’s backers.

The truth is simple …

Government corruption involving politicians and their special interests is ongoing and advancing. They will take as much of the public’s money as can be grabbed without inciting a taxpayer’s revolt. These are the politicians who have passed legislation that has forced productive individuals and corporations to leave California or outsource operations to foreign countries. Thereby creating a larger tax burden to be borne by fewer Californians. And, they have the nerve to speak of increased taxes as your “fair share” or “shared sacrifice.”

Deceptive and defective by design …

With all of the great computer companies in California, does it strike anyone as suspicious that nobody can build a large-scale accounting system that can correctly track government expenditures through their lifecycle? Or, that using fiscal years and reporting budgets and allocations rather than total dollar expenditures is open and transparent? The politicians are hiding the financial manipulations whereby they paper-over negative deficits with more bonds, more borrowing from designated accounts, and sale and lease-back arrangements that allow services to be performed while siphoning off funds to the special interests – using the collateral of future tax revenues. Every major computer system in the State appears to be plagued by multi-million dollar cost overruns and delays mounting into years. How the hell can this happen with nobody except low level employees being held accountable?

The way budgets should be created …

Budgeting is not all that difficult. You start with prioritizing public protection with the police, fire, medical services; add critical infrastructure like water, electrical, garbage services, and jails; add the repair or replacement of critical infrastructure; re-engineer funds going to education; and then further prioritize the budget with airports, harbors, and mass transit. You eliminate anything that is not necessary to run the State including bogus state agencies, commissions, boards, panels – and the six-figure salaries handed out to termed-out or lame politicians who provide little or nothing of real value for their salaries, perks, and privileges. And, most of all, you re-compute the state’ pension obligations by removing all the nonsensical bumps-ups and special deals. Most of the union contracts were negotiated in bad faith anyway – with the unions and their hand-chosen politicians sitting at the bargaining table; and with nobody to represent the citizens and consumers.

Bottom line …

Enough is enough. It is time to tell the progressive socialist democrats, the toady republicans, and the special interests to step off the government gravy train (think Jerry Brown’s crazy train to nowhere) or be prosecuted for corruption.

Enough to hold vendor’s accountable for the entire cost of a failed project, not just ten percent which is chalked-up as the cost of doing business. People need to go to jail for corruption. And, I don’t mean the 70-minutes California State Senator Rod Wright spent in jail for political corruption. In a just system, why are politicians and bureaucrats forced to forfeit their pensions? Why are unions not investigated for fraud?

It is time we adopt laws to stop legal bribery of politicians using tax-exempt foundations. It is time to remove the tax-exempt status of those organizations that promote illegal aliens and sanctuary policies.

But, most of all – it is time to hold these progressive socialist democrats and their republican sycophants responsible for destroying our formerly golden State of California.

An amazing life lesson from the world of modern art and multi-millionaires ...

From the esteemed art auction house Christie’s where Barnett Newman’s stark “Black Fire 1” sold for $84.2 million, comes an important life lesson …

And then there is this from another fine auction house, Sotheby’s, where Newman’s “Onement VI” sold for $43.8 million …

Can it be something we cannot see or appreciate, something that art connoisseurs and the sophisticated people see?

Barnett Newman (January 29, 1905 – July 4, 1970) was an American artist. He is seen as one of the major figures in abstract expressionism and one of the foremost of the color field painters. His paintings are existential in tone and content, explicitly composed with the intention of communicating a sense of locality, presence, and contingency. <Source>

Or is it the case of the Emperor’s New Clothes where the cognoscenti explain it to the unwashed? What the hell does this sentence “His paintings are existential in tone and content, explicitly composed with the intention of communicating a sense of locality, presence, and contingency.” actually mean? The triumph of style over substance – or the triumph of bullshit over everything else.

Why?

Why would anyone pay $84.2 million dollars for a work that could be done by the average person in a very short amount of time? The answer is relatively simple to understand. The work itself is appears irrelevant to the its perceived value as a totemic symbol. A symbol that that says more about the purchaser than it does about the work.

Conveying the message, I am rich enough to spend $84.2 million on a triviality? I am sophisticated and hip because this work has been validated by the arbiters of sophistication and hipness? Or, I believe in the greater fool theory and this is an investment -- because some rich doofus will come along and purchase this work at a premium? Or is it simply a conversation starter among the like-minded wealthy that want entre into the lives of other wealthy individuals? Then again, it does make a great tax-deductible gift to perpetuate your name.

Whether or not you believe this painting is art or the highest expression of the art of bullshit, you now know that the true value of anything is simply the price someone is willing to pay for it. Made more so by the scarcity of uniqueness or the fact that others believe that a totemic symbol says more about the owner than it does the actual symbol.

Bottom line -- a limited-time special offer from steve ...

steve-self–1

So if anyone wants to offer me ten million dollars for my original modern art self-portrait, just drop me a line. Cash, checks, gold, silver, platinum, jewels, bitcoins, or almost any other thing of value will be cheerfully and carefully considered. Personally, I think is is a remarkable modern art piece that is comparable to the original …

-- steve

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

The unions are fond of demonizing management and demanding “social justice” for their workers. According to published reports, if every Wal-Mart executive was to forfeit their pay and benefits, it would amount to approximately ten cents per hour in an employee’s paycheck – subject to the additional taxes imposed by the progressive socialist democrats for their support of illegal aliens and the purchase of political power by doling out contracts, grants, and subsidies to the special interests who fund their campaign.

Not to mention that unionized workers will pay dues and possibly have their pensions and healthcare controlled by self-serving union bosses who feather their own nest first. Unions that may have an association with thuggery – including organized crime.

And, if you do not believe that highly-compensated and motivated managerial expertise is need to keep Wal-Mart as a productive company, just consider the employee losses and declining fortunes of Sears, K-Mart, JCPenny, and other brick-and-mortar retailers who are fighting a war against electronic retailers like Amazon and the Chinese Alibaba.

So before you condemn the management of Wal-Mart, consider what the socialist unions have added to our gross domestic product: higher prices, longer delivery schedules, and lower quality goods. In fact, consider what they have done to the steel, textile, automotive, aviation, railway, postal service and shipping industries. Look at the number of formerly competitive enterprises that have outsourced their activities to non-union states or abroad.

The unions are fond of quoting the disparity between executive pay and the workers – not once considering that most of the lower-level and mid-level employees are incapable of strategic thinking and running a large major enterprise.

The truth that nobody mentions …

We live in a consumer economy financed mostly by credit. It is in your best interests to spend less than you make and to reduce your debt burden to keep from paying interest on non-productive assets that deteriorate and depreciate the moment they are purchased. We trade our hard-earned dollars for the latest and greatest gadgets to convince ourselves and others that we are successful. We buy incremental performance at inflated prices that have an inverse cost/benefit ratio. Whether for convenience or ego-stroking, consider reducing your purchases this year, and the next, and the next. Do not confuse the trappings of wealth (expensive homes, cars, accessories, etc.) with having wealth and real financial resilience.

But if you must purchase goods and services, do it at the lost cost provider like Wal-Mart. After all, companies who offer lower cost goods and services benefit the poor and middle class – the very people the unions purport to benefit.

Proof …

If unions were sincerely interested in the economy of local communities, you would not see organized opposition to big box stores fronted by so-called community activists. You would not see lawsuits demanding environmental impact studies. And, you would not see the suggestion that the community could benefit if only the store were unionized. Instead, local employees and the tax-base of the community suffer as the store moves down the road to a friendlier environment that is more appreciative of the jobs and the tax base. And, the activists and agitators move on to their next target. (pun intended)

Bottom line …

Before you condemn a company’s management, show me what the union adds to the mix – ignoring merit for seniority, increasing labor costs without a corresponding increase in productivity, fighting modernization, and imposing insane work rules that slice and dice work to be spread over a multiplicity of unnecessary workers – all paying union dues.

Show me where the union treats its members fairly by respecting their political wishes. Tell me that unions do not produce political corruption and sweetheart deals that benefit the union, politicians, and do great damage to our economy.

So before you take that lying “information” brochure from a worker who probably does not work at the site, think about what you are supporting. Think about how many employees must be shed to deal with increased wages without increased productivity. Think about the entry-level and part-time positions that were designed to help new employees acclimate to the workforce – not become a career position that could support a family of four. And, think about handing the levers of power to a parasitic union that cares nothing about the host it devours – only how much life is left before the enterprise is consumed by the cancer.

If you sincerely want to help workers, patronize their companies. Make them stronger, not weaker.

While it is intuitively obvious that many of us have much to be thankful for: our health, happiness, family and friends – there should be reserved a moment to consider the future.

Many of our fellow Americans may not be enjoying the comfort of a home, a hot meal or the pleasant companionship of family and friends. And in these days of a 16-trillion dollar national debt, that is a crime.

No, I am not suggesting that we turn towards socialism and the failed prescription of “from each according to their ability, to each according to his needs,” but I am suggesting the manner in which public funds appear to be used to promote the self-interests of the political ruling class and their benefactors, the special interests.

Why, I am bound to ask, are so many people suffering when the politicians are telling us that they are acting to improve the lives of American citizens?

Where have all the billions spent on eliminating poverty, crime and decaying neighborhoods gone?

And why do inner city cesspools of decaying neighborhoods, crime and corruption still exist with such “enlightened” political leadership?

Truth be told, we are witnessing the most corrupt government in the history of the United States. On all levels – local, state and federal. Politicians whose votes are for sale, year-after-year, to those who provide campaign funds, voter support and personal enrichment for themselves, their relatives and “special friends.”

We can plainly see thuggish union leaders who have used the strength of their non-complaining members to push citizens away from the bargaining table so self-serving deals can be struck between themselves and their paid representatives in government. Deals which cost citizens billions of dollars in higher costs, lost productivity and the reward of seniority over merit, complacency over innovation and most of all – the stifling of individualism to support the unexceptional collective.

We allow our leaders to speak of education – to inform and uplift our children to new heights, preparing them for competition on a global scale; while the evidence shows that the bulk of the money targeted for education is used for adults – the administrators, unionized employees and the special interests – and never reaches the classroom. We see our children becoming mind-numbed robots; worshiping an empty celebrity culture and playing mind-warping games on the latest electronic devices. The promise of computer assisted teaching has become the plague of computer-assisted babysitting. Our children cannot do math without a calculator and cannot prepare a research paper without Google, Wikipedia and a cut-and-paste environment.

We allow the nation to be led by a virtual unknown; a man who hides his credentials from the public and who needs a speech writer and teleprompter to speak to the American people about goals and what he really believes.

We allow a political party to field eight or more candidates, most of them babbling platitudes while disguising personal failings that would not be accepted for a position on a school board much less high public office.

What the hell happened to those who believed that this generation was the “best and the brightest?” What happened to individual responsibility where individuals actually paid for what they wanted in terms of real time, effort and money?

So I ask you on this Thanksgiving holiday, where did we go wrong and are we going to allow a relatively small bunch of pandering politicians and their special interest friends to rule our lives?

How the hell did a community welcome race-baiters and communist agitators who wanted to incite a riot to promote themselves and their cause? All apparently bemoaning the death of a drug-addled thug who committed a strong-arm robbery and then challenged an armed policeman. How was it that the policeman was judged guilty by the community while the thug was turned into a martyr for civil rights? What civil rights give you the right to steal from your neighbors, riot, loot, and destroy public and private property?

Are we going to demand a return on the investment in our own taxable labor to benefit ourselves, our family and our friends rather than those who contribute nothing to society, but take their piece of the action for non-performance?

Are we going to stop pretending and realize that the “emperor has no clothes” and has become an imperious Marie Antoinette? Conferring advantages with the stroke of a pen on illegal aliens to the detriment of law-abiding American citizens, many of them legal immigrants.

Are we going to hold people accountable for their actions. Charity is one thing, but state-directed charity towards themselves is quite another. Especially when it is promoted behind a political agenda of “wealth redistribution” to gain the support of the masses.

Please open your eyes, look about and realize that there are those who do not wish America and its citizens well – and that there is a great likelihood that these people have infiltrated our educational, law enforcement, government and institutional infrastructure.

Think about next Thanksgiving and whether or not you will really be thankful for what the corrupt politicians and more easily manipulated voters among us have wrought.

And, let us have a moment of silence for those who cannot be here to celebrate with us …

-- steve

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

I am disgusted by the number of for-profit and non-profit organizations that are piggybacking on the racial animosity in Ferguson, Missouri …

Above is the closing P.S. of an e-mail pitch that urges me to make an “emergency” tax-deductible donation $50 so that the non-profit can use the money to better inform individuals, lawmakers, and others on the “truth about Ferguson” and the race riots that were looped almost endlessly in the media. I refer to this pitch as a “wing-nut” pitch seeking to motivate the weak-minded and others who cannot think for themselves to adopt a reasonable position – and one that is profitable to the organization exploiting the troubles in Ferguson.

The facts as elicited from forensic evidence and eyewitness testimony presented by the prosecuting attorney to the Grand Jury to determine if the evidence supports a “true bill” (indictment) on criminal charges …

A 6’4” 292-pound black teenager and an accomplice entered a convenience store, stole some cigarillos, strong-armed a convenience store clerk on the way out of the store, decided to walk down the middle of a street, leading into a violent confrontation with an armed police officer on patrol that left one man dead.

When a suspect, armed or unarmed, attempts to assault a police officer and puts their hands on the gun – that is an existential threat to the officer’s life and deadly force is authorized by law and departmental policy. There is no doubt that, for whatever reason, the thug precipitated his own death and could have at multiple times – even after the first shots were fired – stopped the attack to comply with the officer’s commands.

The accomplice was the first to offer a false narrative – and I believe he should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law for the theft and/or receipt of stolen merchandise and including charges for perjury in statements to law enforcement.

Disagreement for profit …

While the Grand Jury meets, deliberates, and votes in secret to avoid outside pressures and influence on their determinations, there are some who believe that prosecutors have a duty to force an indictment out of the Grand Jury or that the lack of a vigorous cross-examination of the witnesses somehow taints the proceeding. These are specious arguments put forth often by those who disagree with the Grand Jury’s determinations. This in no way taints the proceedings or suggests that there will be a different outcome in an open trial.

Unfortunately, people directly and indirectly connected to the matter at hand have a vested interest in the proceedings. Some want to exonerate their relative’s behavior and actions. Others seek a large payday from any perceived wrongdoing. And, yet others want to raise their media profile, seek contributions, and capitalize on the event – in essence piggybacking on the news to generate interest in their story, agenda, or profit-making scheme.

BTW: The only tactical error Officer Darren Wilson made when encountering two suspects …

It is apparent to any law enforcement agent that Darren Wilson made a tactical mistake when he decided to back-up and angle his vehicle to contain the two suspects of a “stealing” that had just occurred. Knowing that a crime had been committed and observing the size of one of the suspects, good tactics dictate the officer make a U-turn and position his vehicle with the passenger-side toward the suspects. Thus giving you the tactical advantage to leave your vehicle unmolested or employ deadly force without impediment if necessary. Had the officer chosen this path, there is a real possibility that the situation would have not escalated immediately to assault followed by the death of Michael Brown.

Bottom line …

From the communists, separatists, socialists, anarchists, and opportunists on-scene to the media that is exploiting this American tragedy to pursue political power, personal prestige, and profits – STFU! And, this includes those who do not support law enforcement to keep America and Americans safe from criminals and hooligans – including President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder who are exploiting the situation to pursue their self-serving political agenda.

To the idiots who are willing to burn down and/or loot their own communities – perhaps you should revisit one of the prime directives: you don’t sh*t where you eat!

And, let us not forget that a police officer doing his duty has just undergone a life-altering event that will see his employment compromised and his life perpetually at risk for doing what he was trained to do. There will be no compensation from those who knowingly and willingly destroyed this man’s future with their false narratives and agitation.

I refuse to support any individual or organization that shamelessly fundraises or exploits the tragedy in Ferguson, Missouri for their own political and profit-making purposes.

-- steve

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

There should be little doubt in anyone’s mind that the IRS is one of the most powerful and feared agencies of the United States government. And, as with all government agencies, they have the time, money, and resources to greatly outlast all but the most powerful and wealthy adversaries. Unfortunately, as we have recently seen in the Lois Learner, IRS targeting of conservative organizations, some individuals, for personal, professional, or political reasons may abuse their authority and misuse the power and assets of a government agency.

One question arises, how far may the government go to secure information that can be used to prosecute individuals and organizations and does that investigative leeway exceed the bounds of legality and perhaps shock the conscience of those who would normally approve and respect the government’s effort to keep America and Americans safe, secure, and to promote the functions of the government?

It appears that the IRS, and perhaps most other government agencies, may have administrative rules and regulations that allow them to pose as clergy, physicians, and attorneys – all positions with legally codified and protected relationships with individuals.

Denials, weasel words, and plausible deniability?

Of course, when confronted with a direct question of whether or not an agency may have engaged in illegal, unsanctioned, or improper behavior, they often use weasel words carefully crafted by attorneys to avoid the potential of being prosecuted for perjury when testifying.

More Federal Agencies Are Using Undercover Operations

The federal government has significantly expanded undercover operations in recent years, with officers from at least 40 agencies posing as business people, welfare recipients, political protesters and even doctors or ministers to ferret out wrongdoing, records and interviews show.

Those guidelines apply only to the law enforcement agencies overseen by the Justice Department. Within the Treasury Department, undercover agents at the I.R.S., for example, appear to have far more latitude than do those at many other agencies. I.R.S. rules say that, with prior approval, “an undercover employee or cooperating private individual may pose as an attorney, physician, clergyman or member of the news media.”

An I.R.S. spokesman acknowledged that undercover investigators are allowed to pose in such roles with approval from senior officials. But the agency said in a statement that senior officials “are not aware of any investigations where special agents have ever posed as attorneys, physicians, members of the clergy or members of the press specifically to gain information from a privileged relationship.”

The agency declined to say whether I.R.S. undercover agents have posed in these roles in an effort to get information that was not considered “privileged,” meaning the type of confidential information someone shares with a lawyer or doctor. <Source: New York Times>

An excerpt from the IRS Manual …

Part 9. Criminal Investigation

Chapter 4. Investigative Techniques

Section 8. Undercover Operations

9.4.8 Undercover Operations

9.4.8.3 Classification Of Undercover Operations

Undercover activities are classified as either Group I or Group II. All Group I undercover operations must be approved by the Chief, Criminal Investigation (CI). Group II undercover operations are approved by the Director, Field Operations.

9.4.8.3.1 (11-13-2012) -- Group I Undercover Operations

Group I operations exceed 6 months in duration, and/or exceed the Director, Field Operations, level of approval for confidential expenditures or exceeds $50,000 in recoverable funds. For tracking purposes, the approval period will be measured in months rather than days. Therefore, an operation beginning on January 1 for 3 months will terminate on March 31 and an operation beginning on September 25 will terminate on December 24, etc.

Group I approval is also required for any operation that involves a reasonable expectation of one or more of the following factors:

-- An undercover employee or cooperating private individual will attend a meeting between a subject of the investigation and his/her lawyer that is covered by the attorney-client privilege.

-- An undercover employee or cooperating private individual may pose as an attorney, physician, clergyman, or member of the news media.

For example, an agent may pose as an attorney in a setting where he/she purports to represent some other identified party, such as another agent or cooperating private individual, or when the impersonation will clearly not involve a setting conducive to the initiation of an attorney-client relationship with any third party.

Further, when assuming such roles, agents will not perform professional services associated with these cover occupations or assume such a cover occupation for the purpose of developing a privileged relationship with any third party.

-- An undercover employee or cooperating private individual will request information from an attorney, physician, clergyman, or other person who is under the obligation of a legal privilege of confidentiality, and the particular information would ordinarily be privileged.

-- An undercover employee or cooperating private individual will request information from a member of the news media concerning any individual with whom the news person is known to have a professional or confidential relationship.

Unfortunately, we have seen ample evidence of problematic behavior in the Department of Justice under Attorney General Eric Holder who appears to be conducting unconstitutional and illegal programs to obstruct justice and protect the White House and other executive branch agencies from the consequences of wrongdoing.

As for operations sanctioned by “senior officials,” we have seen allegedly inappropriate operations sanctioned by Lois “Fifth Amendment” Learner, Director of the Exempt Organizations Unit of the IRS who leaked the results of a targeting investigation by planting a question in a seminar and whose activities are grossly suspicious.

We have also seen some covert attempts by the Department of Justice to spy on the constitutionally-protected activities of credentialed journalists. In one instance, information on a reporter was gathered with a search warrant issued by the DOJ and apparently signed-off by Eric Holder that falsely swore, under the penalty of perjury, to the courts that the reporter was part of a criminal case involving an alleged leak of classified national defense information. To the extent of criminalizing a reporter’s normal and customary duties by claiming that the reporter was “an aider, abettor and co-conspirator.”

The Justice Department pledged Friday to to review its policies relating to the seizure of information from journalists after acknowledging that a controversial search warrant for a Fox News reporter’s private emails was approved “at the highest levels” of the Justice Department, including “discussions” with Attorney General Eric Holder. <Source>

Hacking, the destruction of work product, and the planting of classified information …

And, in another instance, a prominent reporter’s personal and work computers were allegedly targeted compromised by a sophisticated hacking attempt that went beyond spying on the reporter’s work and attempting to ferret our confidential source; but included the destruction of documents and the planting of classified data deep in the computer – possibly to pursue a case of stolen data or to be used to coerce the reporter into revealing their confidential sources. The conclusion was that the sophistication of the attack pointed to a specific agency – thought to be connected with the Department of Justice.

Of course the Emmy award-winning journalist was investigating gun running to the Mexican cartels in Fast and Furious where the DOJ was stonewalling the production of documents to duly-authorized Congressional committees and Benghazi which saw the 9/11 anniversary attack being spun by the White House as a spontaneous event caused by an anti-Islamic video. In her own company, CBS, management curtailed her investigative reporting activities – possibly because one of Obama’s senior advisors was the brother of the President of CBS News. CBS has confirmed the hacking event.

And, as would be expected, the DOJ uses the classic weasel words “to our knowledge” to deny any involvement …

CBS News confirms multiple breaches of Sharyl Attkisson’s computer

To our knowledge, the Justice Department has never compromised Ms. Attkisson’s computers, or otherwise sought any information from or concerning any telephone, computer, or other media device she may own or use. <Source>

In the Clintonian parsing of words, one wonders whether “our” refers to the Department of Justice or simply the person issuing the denial.

In anemail dated October 4, 2011, Attorney General Holder’s top press aide, Tracy Schmaler, called Attkisson “out of control.” Schmaler told White House Deputy Press Secretary Eric Schultz that he intended to call CBS news anchor Bob Schieffer to get the network to stop Attkisson.

Schultz replied, “Good. Her piece was really bad for the AG.”

Schultz also told Schmaler that he was working with reporter Susan Davis, then at the National Journal, to target Rep. Darrel Issa (R-CA). Issa led the House investigation into Fast and Furious. <Source>

If you are interested in the DOJ and the cover-up of the Fast and Furious scandal, you may wish to review the documents on Attisson’s website.

The Fourth Amendment …

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

We also have a right to believe that our relationships with our clergymen, doctors, and attorneys are also protected from unwarranted government snooping.

Bottom line …

As we have seen over the past six years, the Obama Administration is neither transparent or accountable, and just very well be the most corrupt Administration in the history of the United States. President Obama and his cadre of progressive socialist democrats have been caught in lie after lie and they continue to spin, believing Obama’s personal popularity will inoculate him from impeachment or criminal charges. Those acting in his stead may have hopes of a blanket presidential pardon if they continue doing his bidding. They are truly above the law.

In many instances, look for illegal activities to have been performed by private individuals, confidential informants, cooperators, or whistleblowers, to insulate and isolate the government from a direct linkage to criminal and/or unconstitutional activities.

The only way we can move forward as a nation under the rule of law is to eliminate political corruption. A process that I suggest starts with the progressive socialist democrats from all offices: local, state, and federal – as well as the bureaucracy and infrastructure.